Wandering
by Lenari
Summary: COMPLETE Gabriel kidnaps Shalimar and Mutant X joins forces with the CIA. Revamped, reformatted and rewritten.
1. Prologue: Prophecy

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters or elements of Mutant X, and I probably never will. Any characters beside the ones that appear on the show are originally mine, unless otherwise stated.

All of my stories are fiction, and any similarities with real people or events are unintended and purely coincidental. I would love to have feedback, bad or good. Everything helps you grow.

Rating: PG-13 for language and mild violence (there are slightly suggestive passages and some more graphic, but nothing offensive, and no slash)

Summary: Gabriel kidnaps Shalimar and Mutant X joins forces with the CIA

Wandering

by Lenari Ryan

A/N: This is something completely new, it wasn't part of the original story but since I'm rewriting it I decided to add this to start preparing the way for the sequel, which I am working on.

_Italics_ signal thoughts,**bold** signals visions, and **_bold italics_** signal telepathic conversations.

Prologue: Prophecy

Katharine and Marina sat calmly on the porch of the Moreau house drinking iced tea and enjoying the view on that beautiful afternoon. Sarane joined them as they reminisced about the day they met Evan Christopher Sullivan. He'd entered the office, so very full of himself, even though he had only been 10 at the time.

They laughed at the way Katharine had put him in his place, and a wistful smile stayed on Kay's lips as Marina recalled how a deep friendship had bloomed between the two. Marina was Kay's best friend, and she knew that Kay had confided in Evan things she'd never told anyone before. He was that kind of person, he made you trust him.

Kay got up and walked to the garden, looking around, and sighing. Herfather kept saying she and Evan were meant to be together, but she was interested in someone else and Evan was completely indifferent to whichever charms she may have possessed. She felt a vision coming on and closed her eyes to steady herself in preparation.

**Loalys Vaughn ran after John to stop him from taking her sister. "Anna, no!" she screamed. But in doing so, she played right into his hands, and Gabriel pulled her and took her, too. Their brother fought but ended up bleeding and beaten.**

**Meanwhile back in L.A. Ben Easton ran after Viviane Leighton after she escaped the high security complex, taking Ashleigh Harland hostage. He followed them to a van and pulled Ashleigh in hopes of retrieving her, but pulled Viviane instead and ended up unconscious in the van floor among laughs of Viviane and sobs from Ashleigh.**

**Gwendolyn Holden kicked the door down and looked around, hoping to spot someone from the Strand in Gabriel's lair. Instead, she bumped into Gabriel himself and soon was overpowered by his feral and masculine strength, finding herself also mesmerized with him, and that was the start of the most dangerous love affair Gwen would ever have…**

Katharine opened her eyes and found herself in Marina's bedroom, with Sarane leaning over her watching her. She breathed deeply and pulled out her cell phone, hitting speed dial one.

"Sullivan" someone answered curtly on the other side.

"Evan, it's Kay."

His voice softened and Kay could almost hear in it the smile that must have formed on his lips. "Hey, Andromeda! What's up?"

She smiled at his nickname for her. "You need to call Davis and tell him to desist."

"What do you mean?"

"Viviane and John coordinated their escapes with Gabriel. They'll kidnap whatever agents they send."

"Just for kicks?"

"It's the Vaughns, Harland, Holden, Easton. The deal."

She heard him sigh. "I'll see what I can do. Go to Adam. I'll call you and keep you informed."

"Thanks, Antares,"

"No problem Andromeda. Say hi to Lyra for me." And he hung up.

Katharine pressed her eyelids shut and smiled feebly. "Lyra, Antares says hi."

Marina laughed. "Andromeda, I think you and Antares form a fabulous galaxy."

Kay opened her eyes and glared at Marina. "Down, down, Lyra. Two constellations can't form a galaxy on their own. Not like we'd want to."

"Go ahead and kid yourself, then," Marina replied, rolling her eyes at her friend. Sometimes Kay could be so clueless.

A/N: For those of you who, unlike me, aren't obsessed with astronomy, Andromeda, or the Chained Princess is one of the most beautiful constellations. Lyra is another constellation and Antares is my favorite star.


	2. The Incident

_Italics_ signal thoughts,**bold** signals flashbacksand **_bold italics_** signal telepathic conversations.

Chapter one: The incident

Brennan and Shalimar climbed out of the black Audi and looked around. The plaza was very crowded, and it made Brennan sigh in frustration. It would take forever to find Katharine here. Kay was a mutant that combined multiple powers, and she was part of a very prominent genetic research facility that belonged to her grandfather.She was just 14, but her mutations had greatly increased her mental capacity.

Because of it, Gabriel had taken a growing interest in her and had tried to convince her to work for him, and when that failed, he resorted to different methods, all of themto no avail. Then he sank even lower and kidnapped three of Kay's old teammates: Gwen, Anna and Ben. As soon as Katharine found out Gabriel had involved them, she knew it was time to take action, so she called Adam for help. Adam immediately agreed and sent Shalimar and Brennan to meet Kay, since she so requested it. She said she needed to talk to Brennan before she even stepped into Sanctuary.

As Brennan walked alongside Shalimar, he opened his mouth to comment on their incident earlier, and Shalimar merely glared at him. If he had been anyone else, he probably would've shriveled up at the look she gave him, but he was used to it by then. Shalimar was, in fact, a very complex person. Lost in his thoughts of Shalimar, he didn't notice when Shalimar stopped abruptly, looked around as if searching for something (or someone) and ran off as fast as her legs and feral strength would carry her.

Brennan ran like crazy through the crowd-infested plaza trying to keep up with Shalimar, instinctively following her since he couldn't actually see her anymore. He knew she had spotted a scent, he had recognized her movements. He also knew her feral instincts had just taken over, leaving him in the dust trying to fend for himself.

Truth is, he hated when she did that; when she just ran and left him struggling to keep up. Sure he was in good physical shape, but he was nowhere as powerful as a feral. Problem was, most of the time she didn't realize what she was doing, and her feral instincts took over quite often. After a couple of hectic minutes, he came to a clearing. Much to his surprise, Shalimar wasn't there.

He froze, a thousand horrible images running through his head. _Please don't do this, Shal. Please be okay. Jesus, Shalimar, where are you! _He yelled her name a couple of times, going through the alleys, yet he didn't receive an answer. In one of the alleys, there was an old, very worn sofa. Looking at it, a memory triggered in the back of his head:

**Shalimar tugged at his arm playfully and tried to take the Stephen King book away from him.**

**"Shal! I'm reading. Now go."**

**Shalimar stared at him with mock indignation. "I can't believe you'd rather read 'From a Buick 8' than spar with me!"**

**Brennan scoffed. "Believe me, I'd rather do anything than get my ass kicked by you, yet again. I'm still sore from last time!"**

**Shalimar just had to laugh at that. "Oh, Mr. Mulwray, I thought you were tougher than that! Otherwise, I would've gone easier on you. Then again, maybe not", she said, sticking out her tongue.**

**He looked at her challengingly and smiled. "Well, Miss Fox, how desperate exactly are you?"**

**She raised an eyebrow. "What is that supposed to mean?"**

**"Nothing. I just can't believe you'd rather be with me than someone else" he said, somewhat reluctantly as he buried his face in the book as to avoid her gaze.**

**Shalimar's face switched from indignation to tenderness. "There's nothing I'd rather do." Then, regaining her composure against his curious scrutiny, she added, "Besides, I do like hitting your ego."**

**Now it was Brennan's turn to raisethe eyebrow and be offended. "Oh, really?" He closed the book and started tickling her. Tickling each other, they soon fell into a compromising position on the couch. Shalimar lifted her head and brushed his lips with hers. Bren was surprised, and Adam walked in before he had a chance to react. They quickly straightened themselves and acted like nothing had happened, but the slight smirk on Shalimar's face told him differently. He shook his head and left them, but they decided to burst into laughter and not push the matter further.**

A blood-curdling scream brought Brennan back to reality with a jolt. He followed the voice into another alley, as the person kept whimpering relentlessly. And as he reached the alley, he saw Gabriel drag Shalimar through an iron door, but by the time he reached it, it was already closed. The only proof that they'd actually been there was Shalimar's comlink, which was on the floor. He picked it up, shaking his head angrily, and called Jesse through his comlink. Through gritted teeth, he informed him of the latest developments. "Jess, Shal's gone."

A/N: I know, I know, evil of me to leave you with a cliffhanger, but just click the little purple button with the » right side of your screen and let's move on, shall we?


	3. It's all my fault

_Italics_ signal thoughts and **_bold italics_** signal telepathic conversations.

A/N: Since I received nice reviews, you get another chap! Thanks, Jouliana! And in chapter three, the rating changes to R, we have a certain "situation" with Shalimar… what will happen? What indeed? Review and I'll let you know.

Chapter two: "It's all my fault"

Jesse was startled from his work when he heard Brennan's pained voice, and as he tried to react to the news, he heard a loud shriek. _Emma! _he thought, worried. He left the console and ran to Emma, leaving Brennan hanging behind. On his way, he collided into Adam, who was leaving the med bay. Reacting quickly, Jesse helped Adam up, informed him of Brennan's report and asked him to take care of it. When he finally reached the room, he phased in, and found Emma curled up in the bed sobbing.

He lifted her softly, accommodating her as to embrace her, and whispering to soothe her into his arms. As he smoothed her hair, the sobbing subsided, allowing him to talk to her and actually be heard. "It's okay, Emma, I'm right here. I'm not going anywhere."

Emma looked up to find his deep blue eyes filled with sweet concern as he caressed her gently. "Oh, Jess, it was so awful."

"Are you all right? What did you see?"

"I'm fine, it's just that I… oh God I saw Shal and Gabriel and he… she was in so much pain. Screaming and crying and calling out for Brennan. She was so scared, and he, he was…" her voice broke as she tried to choke back a sob and failed miserably, trailing off and refusing to go on instead.

Jesse pulled Emma into his arms again swiftly and held her for a couple of minutes, before he finally placed her in the bed gently and tucked her in. He sat beside her, holding her hand. "Rest. I'll talk to Brennan."

Emma immediately protested. "But it'll drive him crazy!"

"I'll give him an edited version, of course, but he has a right to know.

She sighed, giving up. _No stopping Jess when he has his mind set. And I like that in a guy. Whoa, back up! Did I just… What the hell am I rambling on about? Me and Jess? No way! I've got to be insane. Shrug it off, Emma. _"Just let me know how he takes it, okay?"

"Will do." He leaned over and pressed his lips to her forehead, and then rose up to leave the room, leaving Emma to her thoughts.

Jesse silently walked over to Adam and Brennan, who were stationed in the lab because Adam refused to leave his research. As he came in, Jess could hear Brennan arguing with Adam about having lost both Katharine and Shalimar all in one day. Hearing Jesse enter, Adam asked about Emma without taking his eyes off Brennan.

"She's fine. She just saw something she shouldn't have seen, that's all."

Brennan got suspicious because Jesse was looking at everything but him. Mustering up the courage, he forced himself to ask. "Jess, what happened to Shal?"

Jess finally looked at Brennan, seeing how much it took him to ask. _If something like this happened to Emma… _He shook the thoughts out of his head and replied quietly, after taking a while to organize his thoughts and find a way to phrase it without having to elaborate. "Gabriel… took her."

Brennan's eyes widened and his breathing accelerated, as it dawned on him. His jaw clenched, his hands rolled into fists, Brennan struggled to control himself. "That bastard!" he said, with labored breathing, "I can't believe he even dared… but he'll pay for hurting her, I swear to God!" He punched the wall furiously and shook his head, likely imagining how to make Gabriel pay. He punched the wall again and stormed out of the room, leaving Adam standing there very confused.

A/N: Anyone understand anything? Love these angst thingies.


	4. The Taking

_Italics_ signal thoughts, **bold **signals flashbacks and **_bold italics_** signal telepathic conversations.

A/N: Okay, this was like the shortest chapter in the history of and I felt guilty, so I decided to be a good girl and rewrite completely. You'd better like it, I slaved on this rewrite for a LONG time!

This chapter is dedicated especially to Jouliana, here goes what you asked for… but keep in mind that I had to keep this R-ish since NC-17 isn't allowed here and the last thing I need is to get kicked off rolls eyes I seriously hope you enjoy this chapter, I had you in mind as I revised!

Chapter three: The taking

Shalimar tried to open her eyes, but her lids felt too heavy. Her whole body ached as if she had fought, but she couldn't remember a thing. She focused on it and finally started remembering tidbits…

**She knew Brennan was going to bring it up, so she just glared at him. Wasn't he completely clueless? It was bad enough she had totally lost it and kissed him, but did he have to remind her, and on top of it, ask questions about it? It wasn't an issue of him being a bad kisser, he was quite the opposite, as a matter of fact. The issue was much more about the consequences of it on their friendship. As she pondered this, she picked up a scent. A scent that was familiar, in a not-so-good way: it was Gabriel.**

**She ran, leaving Brennan to try to catch up. By the time she reached Gabriel, Brennan was still far behind. _I'll take him on myself _she thought, just as Gabriel had anticipated. By trying to fight him on her own, she had played right into his hands. Before she could do anything, Gabriel pulled her into an alley and slipped off her comlink, leaving it in the floor. "Don't move", he commanded, "I want to see the look in his face when I take you with me."**

**She heard Brennan's footsteps approaching, and managed to catch Gabriel off-guard, biting him, which kept him occupied long enough for her to scream Brennan's name. As he ran to her, and they locked gazes, Gabriel removed the cardboard that had kept the door available for him to open from the outside, and pulled her in when Brennan's hand was mere centimeters from hers. Gabriel's feral stealth was too much for even a fast guy like Brennan to handle, and the last thing she saw was Brennan's deceived face as the door closed before him. Angered she fought Gabriel, although the entire fight had been a blur.**

She figured she must have lost to him, because she sure as hell wasn't home. That much, she knew for sure. Once again she tried to open her eyes, and again it was impossible. She heard steps coming closer, and trembled. It was him. He opened the door and greeted her as usual. She could hear the rustle of clothes being taken off, and thankfully, it wasn't hers. Then, something struck her… hers weren't being taken off because she wasn't wearing any. She was already naked… and then she understood what her dreading meant. She tried to move, but her body wasn't listening to her brain.

She could feel his body coming closer to hers and she just shuddered. _Don't_, she pleaded, _please just lie beside me and don't touch me_. The moment his breath was on her neck, and his hands on her body she knew it was over. _No such luck, eh? Then just please let this be over fast._ As he moved softly, she knew he was determined to make it last. She clamped her eyes shut. She was frightened by what she felt, but somehow she knew there was much more to come. She was immobilized by her fear. If only the pain would go away…

Soon she could feel his wet and hungry mouth on her neck and jaw, then on her mouth, his tongue ramming against hers, trying to deepen their 'kiss', but she couldn't react. Soon he got tired and simply entertained himself with touching her and looking at her body. She kept whimpering, racking her brains trying to find something she could do to drive him away. Instead, she could soon feel him inside her, and all the feeling left her body. She just cried, sobbing with every thrust.

No matter how much she tried, she couldn't shake off the feeling that that Brennan loved her. That all of this was hurting him, too. She could almost see him, tossing and turning in bed, realizing that there was someone else taking her, someone else sharing her bed. Somehow she felt she was betraying him, even if she wasn't consenting in the act. The mere fact of it happening was more than enough to make her feel guilty. As she thought about this, she could hear Gabriel getting up and leaving, and relief flooded her body as she broke down.

Her tears, though flowing freely, did little to cleanse her face from the shame that consumed her. She felt sick, weak and tainted. Before he left he turned to her just in time to hear her mumble. "I'm so sorry, Brennan. I'm sorry I betrayed you."

A/N: Okay, so maybe I got a little melodramatic here. But let's face it: it is what Gabriel would've done if he'd actually gotten his hands on her, isn't it? Please review!


	5. A helping hand

_Italics_ signal thoughts, and **_bold italics_** signal telepathic conversations.

A/N: Gwen and Marius aren't Rayden anymore; their last name is now Holden. Apparently, there's a character belonging to Joss Whedon whose name is Gwen Rayden. So much for my little Mortal Kombat joke.

Chapter four: A helping hand

Katharine ran after Brennan and Shalimar, only to fall flat on her face when a member of the Strand, Patty Jones, made her trip. She looked around to notice a whole fleet of them. "Great. Just great." She got up and started to fight them, but was soon overpowered. As her head hit the floor, and she thought everything was lost, she saw him. Chiseled features, jade green eyes and dark brown hair. She grinned. Marius.

Marius ran to Katharine. He had fought her on countless occasions, and he knew her to be an honorable fighter. She may not be his best friend, but she was being mobbed. He helped her fight, but even the two of them united were no match for the agents. Before things got real ugly, since Patty had pinned Kay to the floor by hitting her abdomen with a massed fist, Gabriel called them off. "I have Shalimar, you incompetents. You're late. Leave the girl, we'll have to deal with her later, since you've failed to deliver her on time."

Before departing, Patty kicked Kay's right arm with her massed leg, crushing her bones and causing her to scream in her pain. Marius approached Kay slowly, partly out of respect and partly because of his injuries. He pressed a tender hand to her forehead, trying to calm her. He looked at her, trying to size up the damage, and shook his head. Her condition was critical. "Are you okay?"

Tears streamed across her face. "I… can't… breathe. Sanctuary… I have… to… go… there… Adam…"

Marius took the keys she offered him, understanding. "I'll be right back."

He found Kay's SUV quite fast. Her key chain said 'Lexus', didn't it? He entered the tawny rose LX 470 and adjusted the seat. Not that it was going to be a long ride, anyway. He drove it to the plaza and parked right beside Kay, who was still whimpering and trying to breathe. He lifted her slowly, doing his best not to hurt her. He carefully positioned her in the passenger seat and drove off. Once he was far from eyesight, he touched the SUV and teleported it inside Sanctuary's garage.

Jesse was facing the console, typing furiously, with Emma sitting right beside him. Adam was still standing there, clueless as ever, trying to make sense of Brennan's words earlier, when the garage alarms went off. They all ran to the spot, hopefully it was Shalimar. But it wasn't. Brennan got ready to electrocute everyone inside the LX, especially when he saw Marius Holden driving. But then Emma and Jesse spotted the bleeding blonde beside him.

Brennan retracted the tesla coil and waited. Marius walked up to the team and tossed the keys to Brennan. "Take care of that car. She loves it." Then he turned to Adam. "Get the med bay ready. She'snearly dying." He turned to Emma and produced a small piece of paper. He wrote down his cell phone number. "As soon as Adam's assessed the damages, please call me and let me know." He moved over to Jesse and gave him his mission. "Get her out of the car gently, or I will come for your blood. I have to alert some people, but I will check up on her." Said this, he teleported out, letting everyone to their assignments.

When Jesse reached the SUV with Emma at his side, he opened the door slowly and felt Emma wince, horrified. Kay really was in bad shape. Brennan opened the other door and looked at her, gulping hard. "It wasn't your fault, Brennan."

Brennan looked at Jesse. "Yeah, right."

Jesse took her and walked to the med bay, with Emma right behind him. As he placed her down, Adam got the scanners ready. As soon as he got the readings, Emma called Marius, still wondering over the fact that he'd taken care of Kay. Snaping his cell phone shut, he prepared to go to the Collins' estate to inform of their daughter's condition.

After a long discussion, Marius had to reveal to Jenna Collins' bodyguard, Kurt Marshall, that his information concerned her stepdaughter. Hearing this, Kurt's eyes narrowed and he called his boss. Eyeing him, Jenna allowed him to go in. He sat down and started telling her about the Strand's ambush, as her husbandcame in. Immediately he went to find out whom Marius was, but he beat him to punch. "Mr. Collins, I'm Marius Holden. I'm here about your daughter."

They both sat down and Marius' cell phone rang. He picked up quickly. "Hello?" he winced. "All right. Thanks. Please keep me updated. Yes." He turned back to Jenna and Wesley, and forced himself to go on. "Kay is slipping in and out of consciousness. She has three broken ribs; one of them is impaled in a lung. Also, she has a broken arm and three dislocated vertebrae. She will be fine, though. She's under the care of Adam Kane and has begun a speedy recovery. As soon as she has recovered, we'll make sure she contacts you. I suggest you let her handlers know of the situation."

The couple nodded, holding each other's hands. "Thank you," her father said quietly. Marius nodded to and rose, he wanted to talk to Sarane and the moment was drawing closer. Time to put ghosts at rest.

A/N: This is it for now. Hope y'all liked this. On with the show.


	6. Discoveries

A/N: This is definitely one of the chapters I totally had to rewrite. Enjoy!

_Italics_ signal thoughts, and **_bold italics_** signal telepathic conversations.

Chapter five: Discoveries

Sarane Moreau paced impatiently around the room while waiting for Kay's call. Just then someone knocked on her door. She ran to position herself behind her desk and asked the person to come in. Her dear friend Jenna Hughes entered her office, a look of terror on her face. Sarane, however, didn't notice because she was reading a report. As Jen called for her attention, Sarane lifted her head slightly and motioned for Jen to sit.

As Jen started telling her about Katharine's injuries, Sarane's eyes widened and she shook her head. Katharine may be one of the agency's greatest agents, but she was going to get herself killed one of these days, taking on every hard mission and putting herself in danger. She was just a kid, but the superiors apparently thought she was invincible because of her mutations. Still, her thoughts roamed off to Gwen, Anna and Ben. Were they all right? Where were they?

Suddenly Marius appeared before her eyes. He looked at her apologetically, and sat down to wait for his turn. As soon as he sat, Sarane's office phone rang. It was her boss, Jerry Davis. She put him on speakerphone, gritting her teeth at his bad timing. "Miss Moreau, I have news for you. Six members from your team have been declared disappeared. Due to large abduction of members, your unit will be deactivated until further notice. If recovered, you would immediately recommence. If you do not succeed in the retrieval, you will be permanently shut down."

Sarane looked at Marius and saw his face contort into pure fury. How dare Davis treat them like objects?That was one of the few things that she and Marius had always agreed on.Jenna was talking again, but Sarane's thoughts were roaming off to the one time, fifteen years ago, when she and Marius had been together. It had been a happy time; one of those tender loves that developed into passion. They'd been young; Sarane had been 17 and Marius, 21. After some time, Marius was overwhelmed by cowardice, since Hunter Moreau wasn't a man who would like knowing that his trusted employee was gallivanting around with his only daughter.

It was only a short time after Marius had left that Sarane found out she was pregnant. Before she could tell anyone, her father died of a heart attack and she was left to take care of her mother. After her pregnancy ended, Sarane was torn by Ginny, her mother, into naming her daughter a Moreau or a Holden…

She shook back to the present by Jenna tugging at her arm. From the look of her face, Jen had been asking her a question. "I'm sorry, you were saying?"

"I was asking about your girl."

"Oh, she's fine. Big and beautiful."

"I can only imagine how hard it has been for the two of you without her father."

"It has." Sarane looked flustered, especially when Marius raised his eyebrows questioningly. _Oh , damn, please don't ask, please don't say anything._

"Well, I'm sure you have important stuff to tend to, so I'll be leaving you." Jenna got up and so did Marius, opening the door for her, who looked surprised to see him again so soon. Then he sat in front of Sarane.

"I have a couple of questions to ask you, but first, let's get the business over with. John Nathan Townsend and his old working partner, Viviane Leighton, are behind the disappearances. I'm worried about them andI'm hoping Kay will recover soon. As for assembling a team, Christina Blake, Jocelyn Woods and Adlai Morris have already offered."

"We'll need a squadron leader."

"Ryan Melhriam. There can be no one else."

"Kay won't like it."

"Neither do we."

"Nice point."

"That's settled, then." Sarane nodded nervously. "So, you have a daughter."

"Yes, Marina Leigh."

"How old is she?"

"Fourteen, just like Kay."

"I didn't know you had married."

"I haven't."

"So…" He was cut off mid-sentence by the appearance of a young woman. She had turquoise eyes and fiery red hair. She couldn't be older than sixteen.She ran over to Sarane's desk, shaking. Sarane got up immediately and walked over to her, and held her. Just then Marius noticed the girl's right hand was bleeding from a very deep cut. Agent Davis appeared at the door and beckoned for Sarane to join him. Sarane looked at the girl, who had recovered her composure. Marius placed his hand on Sarane's shoulder and nodded. "I'll take care of her wound. You go to talk to Davis, okay?"

She smiled at him gratefully, tipping her head as to study him better. "Thank you, Marius." The girl's eyes widened slightly at the mention of his name. And as he led her to a chair and looked for a first aid kit, his feral senses picked up her quiet scrutiny of him. _She has to be a feral_, he thought, _her eyes are on me gently, but trained as I am I can still feel them. Also, she's nervous. I wonder why? _

He moved over to her and started to clean the cut gently. She winced at his touch and he apologized. As he looked it over, he ran his fingers over it in a gently caress and healed it partially, so there was only a superficial cut left. "I'm afraid I'm not powerful enough to completely heal it, but it should be better now." She nodded admiringly at him as he bandaged her hand and returned it to her with a smile. "I had no idea I was so interesting."

She blushed at his comment, she hadn't realized he knew. "I…"

"Don't apologize. I find it rather flattering. I'm Marius, by the way. Marius Holden."

She smiled appreciatively. "I know who you are. I'm Marina. Marina Leigh…"

"Moreau." He finished for her.

"No", shecorrected firmly. "Holden."

His eyes widened as hers watered and she had to avert her gaze. He reached out to touch her hair and framed her beautiful face with her hand. She bit her lip trying to stop herself from crying, but ended up making it bleed instead, and the tears ran across her face anyway. He pushed his thumb against her lip to stop the bleeding, and placed his other hand hesitantly on her shoulder. As the bleeding ceased, he removed his hand and was about to remove the other one when she stopped him, placing her hand over his. They looked into each other's eyes and embraced each other.

Marina smiled against his chest, he was so tall she could barely reach his shoulder. She was tall herself, almost as tall as her mother, and stood proudly against her handsome father as she felt his arms around her for the first time. Marius held Marina closely, reveling in the joy it gave him to know he had a daughter, fruit of the only time he'd loved someone. He embraced her delicately, his emotions spinning in his head. He pulled away softly and examined her. She had his porcelain complexion, her grandmother's hair and Hunter Moreau's brilliant eyes. And Sarane's blush, he noticed as he saw the heat spread warmly from her neck to her cheeks. He traced his index finger across her cheekbones, they were every bit as chiseled as his mother's had been.

Sarane pushed the door open to find Marina and Marius still in each other's arms, and knew that Marina had told him. She stood there hesitantly but Marina and Marius' feral senses picked her presence up. Marius smiled fondly at Marina, noticing. "You're a feral."

She nodded. "Feline feral. Mom said I got it from you."

Sarane spoke, finally. "That and the teleportation."

Marius looked surprised. "You're a psionic hybrid, too?"

Sarane answered for Marina. "Yeah, Rina may not look it, but she's a lot like you."

Marius was about to inquire Sarane, but decided to postpone it. "I have some work to do. But I was wondering if I could drop by later and maybe spend some time with Marina, get to know her."

"I would like that," stated Marina timidly, looking at her mother.

Sarane only smiled at Marina's respect of her opinion. "That would be great, you could go out for a while and maybe drop her off home. You should see her bedroom, I'll remind you a lot of your own and Gwen's."

"Speaking of which, I'd better go see ifAdam knows anything yet. See you later?"

Marina nodded, turning back to him and impulsively pecking him on the cheek before doing the same to her mother and teleporting away. Marius touched his cheek with a smile at her impulsive gesture before blowing Sarane a kiss and departing, leaving her to her conscience.

A/N: You have to agree; this is nothing like the original chapter. My muse insists it's better this way. I'm going to trust her, at least this once.


	7. Jealousy

_Italics_ signal thoughts,and **_bold italics_** signal telepathic conversations.

Chapter six: Jealousy

Kay opened her eyes slowly to find Jesse smiling down at her and holding her hand. She looked around and silently thanked Marius for his help. "Hi, Jess" she said softly.

"Hi. You're a strong one, you know. I was worried about you."

"Aw, thanks! But if Marius hadn't been there, I shudder to think where I would be today."

He smiled. "I guess it was pretty lucky… but I'm wondering why he helped you."

She chuckled. "Join the club. How long have I been here?"

He checked his watch. "About 27 hours or so. Why?"

Her eyes widened and she groaned. "I have got to get back to work."

Jesse scoffed, pushing her back into the bed gently. "No, miss Collins. You're not going anywhere."

"But what about Shal?"

Jesse thought about it for a few moments. "You can help from here."

She rolled her eyes before giving in. "Fine. I'm just glad Adam can fix me up so fast. Normal recoveries totally mess up my schedule." They both burst out laughing, shaking their heads when they heard the door open. Their laughter ceased as they turned their heads to look at the arrival. Emma smiled tensely at the pair as Kay raised and eyebrow and signaled Jesse with a flicker of her beautiful eyes, to what Emma lifted her head challengingly.

Jesse looked back and forth at the pair, noticing the exchange between the two, and decided to intervene. "Emma, why don't you lead Miss. Collins to the guestroom and settle her in?"

Kay turned to him. "Kay, please." Jesse nodded in acknowledgement as Emma seethed. Kay turned to Emma and rolled of the bed. "Shall we, Ms. DeLauro?" Emma nodded and they moved slowly through the hallway.The tension between the two of them was so thick that even the usually clueless Adam had to notice when he ran into them.

As soon as they entered the room, Kay spotted her gym bag on the bed. She rummaged through it and pulled out her cell phone, and hit speed dial one. "Antares? It's Andromeda. Yeah, I'm fine. Adam did a great job. My arm still hurts a bit, but I'll survive. I'm just checking in. Could you please check on the status of Case 313 and call me back? Ok, sure, I'll meet you there. Thanks. See you later." She hung up and turned back to her bag, pulling out Converse sneakers, hip-hugging indigo rinse jeans and a black three-quarters sleeve tee with a crisscross design from under the chest to the hem.

She untied her blonde hair, wiped on some styling wax, and ran her hands through it to make soft waves. Long silver earrings, black mascara to accent her ocean blue eyes and tinted lip gloss on her full lips completed the look, along with a little shimmering blush. Noticing that Emma was staring, she turned to explain. "My friend Evan and I met six years ago, and he used to call me Duchess because I was always well-dressed and wearing a little bit of makeup, and I guess I don't want to shatter the image."

She then pulled a round medallion embossed with ancient symbols and turned it over to show Emma the inscription: "To theDuchess,Andromeda, the greatest friend I've ever had. Love forever, Antares," Emma turned it over again and caressed it with her fingers.

"It's beautiful" she whispered. Kay took it from her and clasped it on, smiling fondly at it before shaking herself back to reality and putting all her stuff back into her bag. She took another look in the mirror and decided to be satisfied. She and Emma left the room and walked over to the lab quietly. As they entered, Jesse lifted his head and smiled at Kay, who smiled back and walked over to him.

"You look beautiful" Jesse complimented her.

Kay smiled, blushing slightly. "Why thank you Lord Kilmartin" Brennan smiled amusedly, he hadn't noticed Kay'ssoft Englishaccent before. Kay walked over to Brennan and asked to speak with him privately, to what Adam nodded, assuring he would call them if anything happened. Kay flirted with Jesse for a couple more minutesand exited.

Emma muttered under her breath and left to her room. She dialed Brennan's cell phone number and asked to speak to Kay. "What do you want with Jesse?"

Kay chuckled. "Jealous, are we? I like him, Emma, more than I'd care to admit. He's noble and strong... rather great."

Emma growled threateningly at Kay. "I thought you were interested in Ben."

"I am. But I tell things like I see them. We're all single, Emma." She chuckled mischievously. "He's mine for the taking." She felt Brennan wince beside her and immediately regretted her choice of words. However, she couldn't take them back now.

Emma remained silent for a few moments, then uttered her last words on the subject in a menacing tone: "If it's war you want, it's war you'll get." She hung up the phone and fumed, more at herself than at Kay. Why was she lettingthis affect her this way?

A/N: Maybe I went a little far with my look on Emma but I would fight for my man… wouldn't you?


	8. Marius

_Italics_ signal thoughts, and **_bold italics_** signal telepathic conversations.

Chapter seven: Marius

Marina and Marius entered the dark hall silently and closed the door behind them with a small little click. Rapidly adjusting to the dark, they proceeded through the narrow corridor to Marina's bedroom door. She pushed it open without a sound and motioned for Marius to follow. He stood beside her in the middle of the room, confused.

"Why are we in the dark? Shouldn't we turn on the lights?" he questioned.

Marina smiled, pressing her finger to her lips as to command his silence and then pointed upwards. The room ceiling was painted a dark shade, and on it glittered silver and golden stars. He studied them carefully, and could soon make outfive constellations: Andromeda, Lyra, Corvus, Auriga and Centaurus, with the Antarus star placed near Andromeda.

He blinked as the lights were suddenly turned on by Marina, and saw it all more clearly. The ceiling was a deep shade of blue, and had the details of wisps of clouds through it. Looking around the room he spotted posters, drawings, newspaper clippings and a framed picture of him. He walked to it and picked it up, it was the same picture he had given Sarane on her seventeenth birthday. The caption in the right hand corner read: "To someone very special, who possesses my soul. Love forever, Marius". He placed it back on her table and turned to face her.

"Sarane was right. This does look like a mix of my room and Gwen's", he stated, looking around.

Marina smiled brightly. "Mom keeps saying I'm a lot like the two of you."

Marius walked over to Marina and held her close, placing a gentle kiss on her temple. He pushed her away softly to caress her cheek and happened to steal a glance at her beside clock. "It's really late, you know. You should be going to bed right about now."

She pouted. "You're starting to sound just like my mom."

He sighed. "I really wish I had gotten to know you as you grew up."

She shrugged. "It's alright. You can get to know me now. By the way, how am I doing?"

He laughed softly. "You're doing great. You're a wonderful young woman, and I am extremely proud to be…" he trailed off, awkwardly.

"…my father. It's fine. Say it and get used to it. You are."

"I just don't feel comfortable with that, it sounds as I'm taking credit or something."

She smirked. "You'll get used to this whole thing, trust me. Now I will go to sleep."

He walked with her over to the bed and tucked her in, pressing his lips to her forehead as farewell. He walked out of the room, closing the door behind him, and stood with his eyes closed in the middle of the hallway. Finally, he made a decision and walked to the door. He pushed it open softly and closed the door behind him. He looked at the beautiful woman who lay there sleeping and smiled like he hadn't smiled in over 14 years.

Sarane opened her eyes when she felt a body fall beside her She turned on the light to find Marius lying on her bed. She moved closer to him and lied back again, and for a couple of minutes neither spoke. Sarane wanted desperately to trust him, but she was afraid he would leave again. No matter how much it hurt her to admit it, she doubted his motives.

"Hi, Marius", she whispered softly.

"I have a lot to apologize for, Sari", he began, "but the first thing I need to apologize for is my cowardice. I never should have left like I did, but I was afraid your father would find out and hate us. Then, when I heard he died, I was afraid you'd be too hurt to see me. Over the years, I found one excuse after another. Mostly, I was afraid you had moved on."

She sighed and pressed her eyelids shut. "I didn't. I haven't. And besides, I have no regrets. I love Marina, and she helped have something to look forward to after my parents died. I, too, need to apologize. I was as much as a coward as you were; you had a right to know you had a daughter."

He took her hand. "I never meant to hurt you."

She nodded, squeezing his hand. "I know. Besides, I think that, for a while there, I actually blamed you for the heart attack my father had. We never did know what caused it. Mom's death was an accident, though." She looked into her eyes and saw that the iciness that had lived in there before had dissipated. They sparked beautifully as he looked at her with a tenderness she hadn't sensed in a long time. He pulled her hand to his lips and kissed it gently, then rose.

"I have said all that I came here to say. It is time for me to leave. Rina gave me her cell phone number, so I'll call her tomorrow. Maybe we could have lunch."

Sarane smiled wistfully. "She'll love that. Now that you know about Marina, I really hope that you become a part of her life."

He winced visibly when she said this; it made him infer that she didn't want him to be a part of her life. He sighed, defeated, and turned to leave when a soft hand grabbed his wrist and pulled slightly. He turned to face her and shook his head.

"Stay", she commanded softly. She pulled him to her and sat him beside her, with slim to none resistance from him. She leaned in to kiss him, and he corresponded her kiss with equal passion and tenderness. They held each other and softly fell on the bed, caressing each other all the while. He laid on top of her and played with her hair. Soon they had to separate to catch their breaths, and he looked into her eyes seeking for an answer to his unexpressed question.

She extended her hand and turned off the light as she rose up to merge his lips with hers. He planted soft kisses on her neck, his hot breath tickling her skin. He whispered in her ear and sent chills down her spine with his touch. They were transported to a long time before, when there had been no cares for either of them. Their feelings took over them and they were soon becoming one with a passion neither of them had ever felt before.

All those years apart had built up and were finally released as they let themselves go into their love-making. There was no thought involved, there was only passion and instinct. They loved each other, they always had, and this was the time. This was their time. His hands trailed fire all over her body as she explored, too, reciprocating all that she was feeling. It felt like nothing else had ever felt. Soon the pleasure was all they knew, and they lay beside each other hugged tenderly and reveling in the aftermath of their love.

A/N: I did my best not to be graphic but I still had to try all this sensory stuff. I hope I did okay, besides chapter three I really have absolutely no experience writing anything remotely R so this is all new for me. However, I did take inspiration from some of the wonderful writers who tried before me: Honour Nature and Lanfear: you were my great inspirations, and it is the greatest honor to be able to look up to you. God bless you, and may many more discover your talent.


	9. Allies

_Italics_ signal thoughts, and **_bold italics_** signal telepathic conversations.

Chapter eight: Allies

Shalimar opened her eyes wearily, fearing what she would see in her new room. She had been place in a containment cell with at least five more people. Her estimations were nearly correct, as there were six more people there with her. A blue eyed and brown haired teen moved over to her side and introduced himself.

"I'm Brendon Easton. You can call me Ben. These are Loalys, Michael and Anna Vaughn, Gwen Holden, and the brunette who's in a trance is Ashleigh Harland."

Shalimar nodded. "I'm Shalimar Fox."

Loalys smiled slightly. "Oh we know who you are." Seeing the confused look on Shalimar's face, she added, "Gabriel wouldn't stop talking about you."

Shalimar looked like she was about to say something, but was interrupted when Anna started coughing violently and gasping for air. Michael pulled her hair back so she could spit out the blood. When she raised her head shakily, Shalimar could see numerous cut and bruises on her face, including a deep one in her lip. Michael pulled her closer to him and smoothed her hair as she buried her face in his shirt.

Loalys' eyes watered as she looked at her little sister, and Shalimar shivered. Anna didn't look a day older than 15, and it was obvious that she had fought Gabriel but he had still managed to rape her. Sensing Shalimar's concern, Loalys turned to explain. "Anna may only be fourteen, but she's a strong psionic. She fought Gabriel as much as she could, but it didn't do her much good."

"So you're all new mutants?" Shal asked apprehensively.

It was Gwen who answered. "Loalys is a canine feral, I'm an electric elemental, Leigh's a psionic and so is Anna, and Michael's a molecular." Receiving a glare from Ben, she added, "And Ben's a freaking telepath, just like Ashleigh. But his powers are in a much shorter range, since he's younger than her."

"Were you all captured by Gabriel?" Shal asked.

"No", said Anna as she emerged from her brother's embrace, shaking her head. "He helped two serial killers, Viviane Leighton and John Nathan Townsend, escape from the high security prisons they were in. Everyone but me is an official taken hostage. I was kidnapped by Gabriel's goons before he took Loalys and Michael."

"But why were you taken, specifically?" Shal asked, confused.

"Gabriel and Viviane offered their help to Gabriel, but they have a price. John's price is Ashleigh, Ben and Gwen. Viviane's price is my siblings and I. John because he's got something against each of their families, and Viviane wants us because she needs us to join her. Biologically speaking, she's our mother, and she says that we must 'accept our legacy of evil'", she said, mimicking her mother. "I didn't accept it, and this was my punishment."

Ashleigh finally opened her eyes. "Andrew assured me that Kay's assembling a team. We should be out by tomorrow morning at the latest."

Everyone sighed relieved, and made small talk to pass the time until they heard footsteps in the corridor. Loalys signaled for them to be silent as she concentrated, her eyes glowing yellow. The door opened to reveal Viviane, John and Gabriel.

"You thought you could outsmart us", said Viviane in her thick brogue, "that was absolutely arrogant and foolish of all of you." She signaled Gabriel and he hit Ashleigh with a psi-blast. "That will keep you from communicating with all you CIA friends. As for Anna and Ben, you're both much too weak to even attempt long range telepathy, so we've nothing to worry about."

John Nathan walked in the room, his presence menacing, and laughed darkly. "We're leaving to much better place, where we can all have fun." He said this eyeing Ashleigh, who spat on him. He flicked his wrist and sent her hurtling against the nearest wall. "Let that be a lesson to all of you. No one challenges me and gets away with it."

With their energies combined, the three evils knocked their hostages unconscious and ordered their lackeys to load them in the jets. The plan for their revenge was just starting. Now, to send Katharine an anonymous tip off in order to lure her to their lair was the next item in their agenda.

A/N: I hope you guys liked this, even if you didn't I love this story too much to let her go. This was, after all, my first fan fic ever! So let me know whether I'm doing better in my writing now. I am barely fourteen, and in my opinion this isn't too shabby. However, writers are usually the worst judges of their own work, and it is their reader's opinion and constructive criticism that build them up. So let me know!


	10. A failed attempt

_Italics_ signal thoughts, signals change of time or place and signals flashbacks.

A/N: Very little chapters left to go! We'll be done soon! Yay!

Chapter nine: A failed attempt

Jesse sat in the rec room's couch reading 'Everything's Eventual' by Stephen King, when Emma walked in slowly and stood in front of him. Since he was so involved with his reading that he didn't notice her, she clicked her heel impatiently against the floor. He lifted his head lazily and his eyes widened at the sight before him.

Emma was wearing a knee-length velvety-looking black skirt made of a flowing material and a tight corset-style olive green blouse. She had a choker from which hung a single tear-shaped crystal, and long chandelier earrings.

"Emma, you look amazing", said Jesse in an awed voice.

She walked over to the couch and sat beside him, crossing her legs. "Why, thank you." Jesse was speechless as he kept looking at her, and, sensing his thoughts, smiled even wider. He raised an eyebrow at her, but she shrugged. "I'm innocent!"

Jesse laughed derisively. "Yeah, right."

Emma shifted and took a deep breath before beginning her mission. "Jess, look, there's something I've been meaning to talk to you about."

Noticing how serious she was, he closed the book and turned completely in his seat to face her. "Yeah?"

"I think we should…" She was cut off by Kay clearing her throat loudly. Jesse turned to Kay with a smile, but Emma glared at her, muttering lowly.

"What part are you on?" Kay asked Jesse.

It took him a couple of seconds to realize what she was talking about. The book. _Come on, Jess, what's the story you're on…. oh, yeah! _"The Road Virus Heads North."

Kay smiled warmly. "Gave me the chills, that one. My friend Julie has a picture whose eyes follow you as you walk across the room. It is supremely creepy. So you can imagine what it was like for me to read that."

He chuckled. "Know anyone with a noisy car?"

"Yeah. My friend Michael has an extremely noisy Oldsmobile that he bought for a couple hundred dollars and he's worked his ass off in restoring."

"He must be very rich."

She nodded. "Oh, he is. And he loves cars."

Noticing the stares and smiles between Kay and Jesse, Emma scowled. That was definitely flirting. She felt the barriers that protected her mind from random thoughts come down and a message entered her head: **_Two's company, three's a crowd, sweetheart! _**She glared at Kay, knowing she was the source of the message, and growled almost inaudibly. But Kay's feral hearing caught it and she smirked, looking very pleased with herself.

Jesse knew that the challenging gleam in Kay's light eyes meant intervention, so he played his role in her little game. "So, Kay, we have a plan yet?"

She smiled him, acknowledging his recognition of her cue. "I was actually hoping that you'd help me research to see what we can come up with."

Jesse's face lit up. "Sure! I'm going to go ahead and start, see you in a couple of minutes."

She nodded and fixed her stare back on Emma, raising her eyebrow. She tossed her hair back gracefully with a swift flick of her shoulder, which she positioned to adopt a cocky stance. They had a glaring duel, neither of them moving an inch, the only sounds being the ones of their own heartbeats.

Soon Emma had to look away, and Kay chuckled, muttering under her breath: "I knew she couldn't beat me."

Emma turned back to Kay abruptly, and her face contorted into a look of pure hatred, her nails biting into her palms as she clamped her hands closed with rage. "What did you say?" she asked, her voice low.

"Ooh", Kay shivered mockingly. "It seems Emmy isn't all that innocent."

Emma closed her palms again and stood up to face Katharine again. "I said this once, and I'll say it again: stay away from him."

Instead of backing out, Kay moved a step forward and gazed straight into Emma's light eyes. "Afraid of a little competition, are we Ms. DeLauro?"

Emma looked at Kay derisively. "You're no competition for me."

Kay smiled warmly. "Then what are you worrying so much about?"

Seeing that Emma was speechless, Kay turned on her heel and walked slowly out of the room. She stepped into the computer area, where Jess was typing furiously, his eyes glued on the screen as he frantically searched what he had acquired. Kay sat beside him and crossed her legs, inspecting the information with him.

After a couple of minutes, she leaned over to whisper in his ear. "Maybe we should remind Emma of the equation."

Jesse glared at her mockingly, then smiled as she squeezed her arms around his waist. "You know, you may just be right."

Emma stood at the doorway, livid with fury, looking at them and readying herself for her next move. _I won't lose him. She won't have him, I won't let her!_

Little did Emma know that she was being manipulated to Kay's will. _She is so predictable, _Kay thought when Emma's emotion waves flowed near her. She leaned in against Jesse again as she started to stand up. "Soon, it'll all be over. Love will prevail." She kissed the tip of his nose, leaving him frozen, and departed clicking her heel rhythmically against the floor.

Jesse was dazed, still trying to recover from the unexpected contact, and his eyes closed. _If onlyshe did it. God, she's just so beautiful and so amazing..._

Emma intercepted these thoughts and a single tear escaped her eye. _I better act fast. She has gained too much to terrain. But I will stop her, soon. I may have failed today, but I still have a lot of opportunities and plans. _

A/N: What is Kay's game, anyway? Soon it will all be explained. I'll give you a hint about the equation: the episode Once Around explains it. Next chapter will give us the rescue plan (finally!) and we'll have the confrontation between Gabriel and Brennan soon enough.


	11. Strategies and flirting

_Italics_ signal thoughts, **_bold italics_** signal telepathic conversations.

Chapter ten: Strategies and flirting

Shalimar opened her eyes after a brief nap. She looked at Anna and Loalys, who were curled up in their brother's arms, at Ashleigh and Gwen, who were lying beside each other, and finally spotted Ben leaning against the wall, his large blue eyes glued to ceiling. He dropped his eyelids, closing his eyes for a couple of long moments. Finally his eyes fluttered open, and he smiled at Shal.

She motioned for him to come closer, and he did, sitting beside her. "You look tired", she whispered.

Ben nodded with a smile. "I've been saving up all my energy to concentrate in order to send Kay a message."

"You strong enough yet?"

He shrugged. "Maybe. But I'm going to need Ashleigh and Anna to amplify it, so I'd better wait for them."

It was thirty more minutes before either of them woke up, in which Shal and Ben remained quiet, analyzing their current situations. As soon as they woke up, Ben explained his plan to the others, and both girls agreed. They each took one of Ben's hands between their own, and they closed their eyes. Ben was the last to do so, his eyelids covering his deep blue eyes slowly. His forehead glowed silver as he tried to connect with Katharine. **_Kay? It's Ben._**

* * *

Kay was typing frantically in her laptop, trying to locate her team's location. Jesse entered her room with some tea, which she accepted gratefully. He sat beside her, smiling.

"You have to calm down, Kay, I'm serious. You're working too hard."

She smiled. "I have to find them Jess, soon. For my sake, and Brennan's sanity."

His expression turned grim. "Brennan barricaded himself in his quarters. Maybe you should go and talk to him."

She nodded. "I will, after I have a talk with my friends at the CIA. Sarane's been paging me all day, and I think I'm starting to exasperate her."

Jesse smiled and nodded. She pulled the computer from her lap and placed it on the bed carefully, then walked a little around the room to get the blood flowing in her legs again. Then she stopped dead in her tracks as she received Ben's message. **_Kay? It's Ben. _**

She assured Jesse that she was fine and concentrated on formulating a reply. **_About time! How are you all?_**

**_We're okay, but we need to get out fast. I'm getting weaker every passing moment._**

Kay sighed worriedly. **_I know Ben, but I need an open mind link to find you guys. _**

He took his time, and when he finally replied it sounded strained. **_Can't talk much anymore. Trace Anna's comlink: 1114-721-428-1123, and please hurry. _**

**_Ben? _**Kay asked, concerned. The moments passed and he didn't reply, and she realized that his messages were probably amplified and draining them all. She walked over to the laptop, and opening the central CIA search engine, Synapse, she entered Anna's comlink and hit trace, Jesse looking at her all the time.

* * *

Ben opened up his eyes after losing the connection and smiled tiredly. "Kay's coming for us", he assured everyone, "we'll be okay."

Shalimar, however, feared that they would be moved again. Picking up her thoughts, Michael shook his head slowly. "I don't think so. I doubt they've thought about Anna being marked by the CIA. If they had, she'd be dead."

Everyone agreed with her, unaware that Viviane was listening outside. "Perfect", she whispered, "they will lure her here and we'll take care of that nuisance once and for all."

* * *

Kay exited the room after leaving Jesse in charge of supervising the search. She walked to Brennan's room and knocked when she arrived. She sensed him inside, and when she had confirmed that he was clothed she reckoned it was safe to enter, she phased through the door and saw him sitting on the bed with a picture between his hands.

"Brennan?"

He lifted his head and she could see that he had been crying before. She moved towards him and sat on the bed. "You know what happened to Shal, don't you?"

"Yes." His voice broke and he shivered, a single tear escaping its confine in the pool of his dark eyes and making its way across his cheek.

Kay lifted his head so that their stares leveled and spoke softly. "We will get her back, I promise. Everything's going to be all right, somehow."

He gritted his teeth. "I just want to kill him for hurting her."

"I understand how this must be for you, but you have to keep your emotions in check around Gabriel or he'll use them against you."

Brennan nodded and they hugged each other, looking for comfort, when Jess pushed the door open, his face sporting a huge grin. "We have a hit! They're in Myelin Island."

Brennan and Kay both yelled "woo-hoo!" at the same time and ran out to the hall. Bren pulled Kay, Kay pulled Jess, and Jess pulled Emma as they ran into her. "Let's go!" he said as he grabbed her arm and they marched towards the lab. When they stopped, Emma crashed into Jesse's arms.

"Sorry", she muttered, embarrassed. He looked down at her smiling and shook his head to show it was nothing. They locked gazes for some instants and Brennan flashed a smile to Kay, who looked rather pleased with herself at the recent turn of events. They drew their gazes away from the pair, using all of their will not to collapse due to their laughter.

Kay cleared her throat and they all walked over to the main console, crashing onto each other all over again. Just then Jesse noticed Kay's change of wardrobe and chuckled. She was wearing jogging pants and sneakers with a sports bra doubling as a blouse. Kay turned to him, raising an eyebrow, and he shrugged. "I didn't say anything!"

"It's not what you said, sweetheart", Kay said, "It's what you thought. I can hear your thoughts, remember?"

Kay pressed some buttons and faced the console expectantly. She gasped when at the other side, instead of seeing her CIA contact, she saw Marius. It was some instants before her mind registered and then she chuckled. "Marius!"

"Hello, Katharine", he drawled softly.

"Kay", she corrected. "What are you doing over there anyway?"

Marius smiled slyly. "It's a long story."

Kay laughed. "I'm glad you got that over with. Can I speak to Rina?"

Marius lifted his finger to shush her. "Rina! Could you come here for a minute?"

Footsteps were heard and Marina appeared. "Hi, Kay! I got what you requested. Mom should be delivering it any minute."

"Good." Kay looked at the others, who looked rather lost, and turned back to the screen in time to see Sarane walk in with her hair still damp from her recent shower. "Hi, Sarane!"

"Hi!" She waved at Kay and smiled at Marius and Marina.

"Obviously, you're very busy and I don't want to keep you, so let's just do this."

Sarane shook her head. "I will pretend you didn't mean anything by that. Anyway, you have a location and a plan, I presume."

"Obviously, I just need troops."

Sarane thought for a minute. "Well, I think Ashleigh's fiancé will want to go, and Stuart for Loalys, and Christina for Michael. You, obviously, and Evan will want to go if you're going, so that about settles it. Oh, and me and Marius."

"Squadron leader?"

She bit her lip, and a nod from Marius prompted her on. "Ryan Melhriam."

Kay whimpered. "You cannot be freaking serious! I will not, I repeat, will not, work with him."

"Kay, if we don't do this, Devlin's taking away my operational approval! We have to let him come with us. You can kick his ass when we're done if you want to, but I do not want your personal problems with Melhriam interfere with our mission."

Kay rolled her hands into fists and squeezed until her knuckles turned white, then sighed exasperatedly, punching the console and shaking in silent fury. She then turned to Sarane, her face determined. "I'll do it. But he steps out of line once, just once, and I fry him. So do me the favor of letting him know beforehand."

Marius smirked. "I knew you'd do the right thing. And don't worry, I'll help you fry him if he tries anything."

Kay smiled gratefully and sighed, crossing her arms over her chest. "So, we'll meet in half an hour on the roof of the Charter Base."

Sarane nodded. "See you there."

Kay pressed the button to end communication and turned to the others, walking towards them. "We leave in ten minutes, meet you guys in the hangar." She pushed past them to leave and was stopped by Jesse's hand on her arm.

"Who is Ryan Melhriam?" he asked, his voice low.

"The bane of my existence." She turned away from him and walked steadily towards the door, her stride decided and hurried. Everyone stood there looking at each other, until Adam signaled them to go get ready.

* * *

They all walked off the Double Helix and onto the roof where the team had been awaiting them. Kay spoke first, greeting her squadron and gazing coldly at Ryan. Evan moved closer to her in a protective gesture, and it was obvious that his mere presence was enough to soothe her. She looked calmer and a lot more focused than she had before.

After outlining her plan and having everyone's approval, Kay gave the order to ship out to Myelin Island. As she climbed back into the Double Helix, she looked up into the sky and sighed. She had an ominous sense of foreboding, and it was going haywire just then. Something was wrong, and she could feel it, but for some reason she couldn't sort it out.

Evan pulled her arm delicately, motioning for her to come in. She did so, and as the doors closed behind her, a sudden stillness settled inside her. It was time. Evan could feel it too, and they both united in silent prayer, hoping what they sensed was wrong.

A/N: Well, this is it. A lot longer than before, and there's still a lot of excitement coming on. But we are reaching the end, and I think it'll be two more chapters. But don't worry, the sequel's gonna be nice and long. This story is basically an excuse to post the second part.


	12. Justice

A/N: This chapter is rather violent, so I'm rating it R just in case.

_Italics_ signal thoughts, **bold** signals visions and **_bold italics_** signal telepathic conversations.

Chapter eleven: Justice

The Double Helix landed in a clearing in the woods, keeping the stealth mode. As they got out one by one, Kay kept sensing around the area to make sure it was safe. She was feeling slightly paranoid, it seemed. Everyone was fully alert, and they slowly made their way to the warehouse where Kay had traced John's lair.

They waltzed in without being seen, thanks to Kay and Emma's abilities. As they approached the room where the others were, John's psychic signal kept getting stronger. A couple of times they had to stop while Kay collected herself. Sarane and Marius were in the back, keeping an eye on the others and transferring information to Marina, who was watching the thermal scanners.

When they reached the doors, Kay's eyes darted around looking for a way of entry. But it wasn't necessary, since the doors opened automatically as soon as she was close enough. The sight before her made her gasp, and she had to put up as many mental barriers as she could, both for her and for Emma. The fear, tension and hatred were overwhelming.

Gabriel was sitting clutching Shalimar to him, while Viviane held Ben and John toyed with Ashleigh. Brennan's blood boiled, but Kay looked at him warningly, causing him to step back and keep quiet, sparks coming out of his hands as a sign of fury. Kay stepped inside the room, all 5 feet and 5 inches of her exuding confidence and control. She looked so powerful, even Gabriel felt slightly intimidated.

Ryanmoved closer, trying to dissuade Katharine, but Evan pulled him back. "Leave her alone, Melhriam, she knows what she's doing." Kay turned to Gabriel, an ironic smile playing on her lips.

"I absolutely cannot believe this. You guys went through all this trouble just to get me here? You're losing that subtle touch of yours, I'm afraid."

Gabriel glared at her and chuckled lowly, running his hands through Shalimar's hair and kissing her neck. "I haven't lost my touch, Katharine, but it was just so fun to kidnap and torture the people you care about. By the way, I'm impressed. Patty's massing wasn't strong enough, apparently."

Kay gritted her teeth, remembering the pain those blows had caused her. She then realized she had to take action, soon. She moved slowly to the middle of the room. She glared at Gabriel straight in the eye, and he shoved Shalimar aside, standing up. She spoke softly. "Taking the challenge, I see."

He flashed his sick smile at her. "Obviously. You see, I'm a gentleman, and I never refuse a challenge, especially from a lady."

She laughed derisively, shocking everyone. "You may be a man, but you aren't gentle." Pointing at Shalimar and Anna, she added, "That, they can vouch for."

He looked her in the eye territorially and started circling her like a predator circles its prey. She merely stood still, keeping her eyes on him at all times and not allowing him to glare her down. If this was going to be a duel of wills, she was not going to back down.

Everyone watched as she refused to lower her stare, watching Gabriel calmly as he tried to intimidate her. Sarane started ordering the others into position. "Guys, when she gives the signal, each of you pick a lady up and run back to the Helix. I'm taking John, and Chris can have Viviane."

Marius immediately refused. "You'll get yourself killed! I'm staying with you."

Sarane shook her head. "No, I can hold my own here. As soon as everyone else is safe, you double back to help me, okay?"

He gave in, giving her hand a squeeze before moving into position. Christina did the same, walking as close as she could to the doorway without entering and waited for Sarane. They nodded, sealing their deal, and walked forward to meet with their destinies.

Apparently Gabriel realized by her stance that she was not about to back down, so he decided to attack instead. Fortunately, she was ready for his dirty tricks. She sparred with him for some instants, and kicked a wall to propel herself backwards, narrowly avoiding a blast. In that split moment that she let her guard down in her concern for Kay, John sent an electricity blast Sarane's way. She took the electricity well, but it was still painful.

Feeling Sarane's way, Marius moved closer but was stopped by Evan. "Sarane can take care of herself. The faster we get them out, the faster you can get her and leave." Marius nodded his understanding and took a deep breath, trying to steady himself. Meanwhile, Christina fought Viviane strongly, evading psi-blasts at high speed. Sarane tried with all her might not to go into John's range, even though it was rather hard for her to do so.

Suddenly Kay fired a blinding psi-blast that ramified in three energy blasts, paralyzing Viviane, John and Gabriel. The team moved in and helped evacuate the place while Kay kept the psychic connection. Emma ran in front of the team, blinding the guards. She finished off the guards that encircled the Helix, and Jesse ran fast enough to catch her when she dropped exhausted within his arms, knocking them both to the ground.

"I'm sorry," she whispered, and he lifted her gingerly, easing her between his arms. He walked over to the Helix, only to be knocked down again by Marius, Evan and Brennan all heading back inside.

"Sorry!" they all yelled over their shoulders as Jesse lifted Emma again, a soft smile curving his lips as he shook his head.

They arrived to the room just as Gabriel tossed and exhausted Kay across the room. Evan and Marius headed straight to her, as Brennan attacked Gabriel fiercely. Lading in front of him after a flip, Brennan tackled Gabriel and kicked him in the ribs, causing him to moan in pain. "That's for Kay." As Evan reached Kay, she started to have a vision and motioned for Marius to come closer. She touched his arm and Marius winced as her power flowed through him, letting him see what she saw…

**Christina finished Viviane off, falling down in sheer exhaustion and disbelief. Brennan and Gabriel still fought tirelessly, as Sarane tried to avoid John's blows but started to get tired. Gabriel powered up a psi-blast for Brennan, but Brennan's tesla coil caused him to miss his aim and hit John instead.**

**John absorbed the energy and united it with the one he had been accumulating and sent it Sarane's way. She was so tired she didn't react in time and it her full frontal, causing her to scream in pain as she collapsed. Marius ran to her as fast as he could, horrified, but it was far too late. She had died.**

Marius returned to the present dimension with a jolt, shaking. Kay placed a soothing hand on his arms and spoke softly before passing out. "If you watch the signs, you can change the future. Only you." He nodded his understanding and she fell into Evan's arms.

He rose up slowly, and his blood froze when he heard the vaguely familiar scream of Lady Leighton as she fell, and the moans of a very hurt Christina. _It is going to happen_, he thought terrified. Then he heard Brennan gasp, like he had before, as Gabriel yelled and John blasted. And he didn't think, not for a second. He couldn't do anything but move.

Sarane saw Gabriel hit John, and when she finally spotted John's blast, he was already shooting it. _I don't have enough time_, she thought desperately. _It's going to hit me, and I'm going to leave Marina. Oh God, I am so sorry. Please forgive me Marina. I never meant to fail you. _As she readied herself for the inevitable blow, Marius tackled her to the ground. She still felt the hit, however, and she lost consciousness immediately, falling into the impending darkness. John moved over to pick up Viviane, but Kay had regained consciousness and psi-blasted the mirror wall behind them. Within seconds, it had shattered, and the glass had buried them.

Christina walked over to Evan as Kay got up and watched Brennan. He had punched Gabriel's face, knocking him to the ground, and had hit him until his hands were numb. "That's for what you did to those women." He pulled Kay's gun from her jacket and emptied it into Gabriel's already lifeless body. "And that was for Shal."

Kay limped up to him and gave him and long glare. "Just to make sure he's not coming back."

"Yeah", he agreed. They walked over to Evan and Christina, who were with Marius and Sarane. Brennan swung Marius over his shoulder and Evan carried Sarane out. Christina and Kay supported each other, and they walked the long walk to the Double Helix.

After the injured people had been loaded up, only Kay, Brennan and Evan remained outside. Kay turned to stare piercingly at the building, her breath troubled as she tried to summon her mind power. Evan placed a hand on her shoulder and allowed her to drain from him. She cast a look at Adam, who was urging the three of them in, and cast the warehouse one last look as she made it burst into flames.

They locked the doors and everyone stared at her silently. Ben got up and hugged her, and when they kissed Evan moved away to let the two have their reunion. Kay curled up in Ben's arms and was soon asleep as they headed back to Sanctuary. The nightmare had finally ended. Or so they thought.

A/N: I like this. I was thinking we may have yet another chapter before the epilogue. Still not sure.


	13. Revelations

A/N: We do have another chapter before the epilogue... woo-hoo!

_Italics_ signal thoughts,and **_bold italics_** signal telepathic conversations.

Chapter twelve: Revelations

As they all arrived at Sanctuary, people started to wake up and realize what had happened. They all filed into the med bay silently, and only those in the direst need of medical attention were allowed to remain: Sarane, Marius, Anna and Kay.

Michael was allowed to stay with Anna, and Evan, who was Kay's CIA appointed partner, stayed with her, over Ben's protests. Eventually Evan gave in and switched with Ben, but not before asking Jesse to keep an eye on her anyway, much to Ben's displeasure.

Shalimar walked over to Evan and asked him why he insisted on staying with Kay. He smiled at her and replied quietly. "Kay is my best friend. She's like another sister to me, and she and Marina brought me and Ellieanna closer than we ever thought possible. There are many other things I need to thank her for."

Shalimar nodded, understanding, yet she knew there was more. "You love her." It was more a statement than a question.

His voice broke slightly as he stared into space. "More than my life. But she doesn't see me like that."

She touched his arm softly. "I'm really sorry, Evan."

He smiled through his sorrow. "So am I."

They walked in a comfortable silence and were soon intercepted by Brennan. Evan took his cue and walked off, heading towards the pond to meditate a little. He found Emma sitting there and looking at the wall, looking as if she were trying to sort through her thoughts.

He remained quiet, watching her, then took a seat beside her and smiled sadly. "You seem sad, Emma."

She looked at him, noticing him for the first time. He seemed impossibly controlled, as if immune to any emotion, yet the thunderstorm that danced in his gray eyes contradicted the impassiveness he projected. "How do you keep yourself from feeling?"

He chuckled. "I don't. I only pretend I do."

She nodded, glad to have assessed him correctly. "How do you manage?"

He sighed. "Trust me, you don't want to know. It hurts twice as much when you leave the pain for later. I should know."

"Sorry."

Evan shrugged. "I just, I can't do what I want. But you can." He turned to look at her. "Tell him, Emma, before it's too late. I didn't… and I lost her. Don't make the same mistake."

She looked at him, wondering how he had known what had been bugging her, and considered his words. She certainly had nothing to lose by telling him, and it may even do her some good. Decided, she rose, thanking Evan, and walked decidedly towards the lab.

* * *

Brennan and Shalimar looked at each other, not daring to use words in fear of breaking the spell that united them. Finally Shalimar began to speak, her voice so low Brennan had to come closer to hear her.

"I believe you know what happened."

Brennan nodded. "Yeah, Kay and I talked about it."

She looked directly into his eyes, her voice merely above a whisper. "I'm sorry."

He shook his head. "It wasn't your fault, Shal."

"Doesn't matter. I still feel guilty."

He moved closer to her and embraced her tenderly. "I can definitely put that behind me, and I'll help you do the same. That is, if you'll let me."

They both let go and she looked at him, her eyes watering. "I'd let you, but why would you want to?"

"Isn't it obvious, Shal? I love you."

Her eyes brightened. "I love you, too."

They hugged again and Evan smiled from the corner where he was watching them. _At least someone got a happy ending_, he thought as Brennan and Shalimar kissed. He turned and walked over to the lab, where he checked on Kay and Sarane. He noticed Emma walking over to Jesse and he silently wished her good luck.

Emma walked over to where Katharine lay, and quickly spotted Jesse sitting beside her, wiping her forehead tenderly. She inched closer as to listen to what Jesse said, her hands clutching the instrument tray tightly.

"Come on, Kay," Jesse urged as her pulse dropped another beat, "I know you're weak right now, but you can do this. Don't leave me, baby, please." She whispered some reply and he shook his head, smirking slightly. "Come on, you know I love you. And it's not because of your money, although it might come in handy every now and then."

Kay chuckled weakly, and Emma gulped, letting the tray fall. Only then did Jesse sense her presence, and when he turned he saw her trembling. His blue eyes widened, and she stormed off before even giving him a chance to speak. He looked at Kay, despairingly, but refused to leave her unattended. Before long, Evan had replaced him, beating Ben in a race to Kay's bedside, and Jess ran after Emma.

When he reached her door, he knocked, receiving no answer. Taking a deep breath, he phased through her door, and found her curled up on the bed, crying. He walked over to her, guilt feeling like a heavy club against his heart. When he reached her, he sat on the bed softly, and, against her will, pulled her over to him. Her sobs subsided as he held her, and she was soon whimpering almost inaudibly.

"Emma, it's not what you think."

She scoffed. "How do you know what I think?"

He sighed. "Fine, then tell me what you think."

She sat beside him and looked deep into his eyes. "I think you and Kay are together."

He raised an eyebrow. "I told you, you're wrong."

She got up angrily. "Bull! You just told her you loved her."

"And I do, Emma, I do love Kay. But you need to give me a chance to explain, here."

She pushed him away. "No, I don't! Leave me alone!"

He held his head between his hands. "That's the point, Emma, I can't! I've been trying to get you out of my head, but I just can't!"

"Why the hell not?"

"Because I…God, because I'm in love with you, damn it."

A/N: Ha! Sorry guys, but none of this was even supposed to be in this chapter. I just didn't want to be too evil and make it too short. But guess what: since I'm leaving for Gainesville on Thursday, I'm going to be very nice and post the epilogue, too. Aren't I nice?


	14. Epilogue: Wander

Just in case, I'm making this R since there are some, uh, steamy moments. Between whom? That's for me to know and for you to find out.

_Italics_ signal thoughts, and **_bold italics_** signal telepathic conversations.

Epilogue: Wander

Emma's eyes widened as Jesse tried to control his outburst. She could not believe her ears. Jesse loved her? How the hell did that happen? She stared at him, shaking, trying to find a way to speak. Finally he calmed down and looked into her eyes. "I'm sorry for yelling."

She smiled weakly. "I'm sorry for not listening. I just.. Did you say that you loved me?"

He nodded. "Yes."

"Did you mean it?"

He smirked. "Of course I did! Look, Kay's like a sister to me. Nothing else. I could never imagine being with anyone but you."

Emma bit her lip, refusing to believe such happiness could ever truly be hers. "Why me? I mean, Katharine is so much prettier than I am. And she's smart and successful."

"And tormented, Emma. She's got a lot to deal with. She and I, we just don't have chemistry."

Emma thought about it for a moment, then got closer to Jesse and they hugged, as they parted, he looked at her, his gaze tender, and leaned in to kiss her. They were startled when they heard clapping and saw Kay standing by the door, supported by Ben. "Took you long enough," she remarked.

"Speaking of which," Emma said looking back and forth between Jess and Kay, "What was the whole equation thing?"

Both Kay and Jess burst into laughter. "Remember when Vic and Claudia went under protection together? You said that you'd be bored like that, I told you that he got to spend the rest of his life with the woman he loved and you smiled, saying you knew there was some part of the equation you envied. I did, too. You were the missing variable," he said with a wink.

They all laughed again, and Emma rolled her eyes. "Before us, I truly doubt anyone would've thought of comparing love to Algebra."

"Love?" Jesse asked, wiggling his eyebrows. "Does that mean you love me?"

Emma slapped him on the shoulder playfully. "Of course I love you, you idiot! Why do you think I was so ticked?" They laughed together and kissed softly, as Kay leaned into Ben and he placed a soft kiss on the top of her head. They closed the door silently, walking back to the lab.

Sarane sat by Marius' bedside, squeezing his hand, tears rolling down her face. She had only been knocked unconscious by the blast, but he had fallen into a coma. And he'd done it for her and for their daughter. Kay walked in slowly, and sat beside Sarane. Adam checked Marius' vitals and Sarane asked him her burning question. "Will he make it?" she asked in a small voice.

Adam lifted his shoulders helplessly. "He's strong; hopefully he will." Sarane nodded, surveying Marius carefully. Kay left her to her thoughts and went over to Anna, who was starting to stir. It hurt her greatly to see her friend in such pain. Meanwhile, she walked over to her own bed to get some more rest.

* * *

Shalimar entered the room and locked the door silently, walking over to Brennan and kissing him. It was a deep and passionate kiss, and when his hands tangled in her hair she moaned softly into his mouth. He was letting his passion overcome him quickly, and they were soon falling on her bed. He let his hands roam over her shoulders, her navel and her hips, reveling in the way her skin felt like silk against his touch.

Realizing what he had been doing, he pulled apart quickly, staring at the wall. Shalimar pulled him down to her urgently, but he wouldn't budge. "What's wrong, Brennan?"

He sighed. "I don't want to hurt you, Shal. And I can't hurry you, especially not after what he did to you."

"Brennan, I trust you. I know you wouldn't hurt me. Besides, this is different. Gabriel only hurt me because he forced me. You're not."

He gritted his teeth. "It's not just about that. I just think you're vulnerable right now, and it feels like I'm taking advantage of you somehow."

She caressed the side of his face. "You're not taking advantage of me because I want you."

"You sure?"

"Definitely."

A wicked smirk curled his lips slowly. "So, you want me, do you?"

She reached up to whisper in his ear, her voice husky as she trailed her hands over his arms. "I'm on fire for you."

He kissed her harder than before, and soon they were undressing each other. The feeling of skin against skin only quickened their desire, as he planted kisses al over her jaw and neck. Her fingertips explored softly, a mere brush against his skin, but she could still feel the ripples of his muscles when he moved. Before long she was needy, and he decided to give in to his own need, entering her delicately.

She gasped when she felt him, and kissed him to make sure he knew she was all right. They moved together in a steady rhythm, their bodies grinding together and their lips joining. The simple thought of it being him on her made her arch up against him, and before long they cried out together. As they breathed and tranquility settled in, Shalimar planted a soft kiss on his shoulder blade as she examined his body, now shiny with both his sweat and hers.

"I love you," she whispered against his skin.

He kissed her neck. "I love you, too."

* * *

Katharine contemplated the computer screen, Evan and Ben at her sides, knowing what she had to do. She opened the word processor and started typing a letter for her boss.

**Esteemed Director Marchany,**

**It is with great sadness I must announce the death of the man you assigned Agt. Moreau and me to hand in to you. Marius Holden expired this morning in consequence of an attack from John Nathan Townsend, who is currently presumed dead. I can also certify the death of Gabriel Ashlock. It is currently unclear whether Viviane Leighton escaped or was trapped under the roof that caved in. We successfully recovered Agts. Vaughn, Holden, Harland, and ****Easton****. A more complete report of events will be submitted upon our arrival back to the agency, which I esteem to be the day after tomorrow at the very latest. **

**Cordially,**

**Katharine Alexandra Collins**

**Agent #5284224**

She pulled it out, signed it, and faxed it, her face set. Then she summoned all the agents so they could get their versions of events straight. They had to return to the agency soon, and they'd better be prepared. Agt. Kendall was, after all, still on their tail.

* * *

Jesse and Emma looked at each other and knew with certainty that they both wanted the same thing. Kissing her tenderly, Jesse began to remove her clothes, and smirked amusedly when she began to blush and mutter. "Relax, Emma, you're the single most beautiful woman I've ever met." She relaxed slightly to his touch and was soon helping him out of his shirt too, her eyes taking him in.

He pulled her down to him on the bed and continued to kiss her, his hand planted firmly in the curve of her hips. He would take it very slow with her, he loved her and would do anything he could to take care of her. He could sense her fear and discomfort despite not being a feral, and decided to only kiss and caress her. There'd be time for everything later. Now, he just wanted to make her feel loved.

* * *

Sarane and Kay stood in front of the car Sarane was taking, Evan's watchful eye residing on Kay all the time. "That's quite an eagle you've got for a partner, there."

Katharine smiled. "Yeah, he's a great guy. I think Marina should date him."

"No such luck, girl. My baby issmitten with Matthew."

Kay grinned. "And I don't blame her." They both laughed softly.

"Seriously, now," Sarane said, "I want to thank you."

Kay waved her gratitude away. "There's nothing to thank me for. I didn't save your life, Marius did, and it cost him his. Or maybe he saved both your lives."

Sarane nodded, then opened the door to her car. "I have to go now, but I'll tell Rina to call Anna and you, okay?"

Kay nodded. "Yeah, Evan and I can call Ellie. Take care, the three of you." Kay said with a wink.

Sarane looked back into the car and smiled. "Oh, we will."

Kay looked up at the sky as Sarane drove off, her thoughts drifting to another direction. _I can't believe this is happening to me. I feel so tired, and I'm so afraid. Now that Dad's got Kylie to worry about I have to fend for myself. Then again, I always have. My little sister's arrival isn't really all that relevant. I just hope I can do this. I feel weak. Maybe I'll find someone that can help me carry this load. If not, I will fail, and forever my soul shall be wandering…_

Evan's hand pressed on her shoulder brought her back from the reverie that had ensnared her senses, and together they walked back into Sanctuary, enveloped in the comfortable silence that came so naturally between them.

THE END… FOR NOW

A/N: I'll try to post Abandon as soon as possible, but I lost a lot of data when my laptop died and I don't feel like rewriting it just yet.


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